


Family Bonding and Bank Robberies

by gaymabelpines



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Bank Robbery, F/F, Gay Grunkle Ford, Gen, Internalized Homophobia, Internalized Transphobia, Lesbian Pacifica Northwest, M/M, PTSD, Trans Dipper Pines, Trans Fiddleford H. McGucket, Trans Grunkle Ford, Trans Grunkle Stan, YOU READ THAT RIGHT THEYRE ALL TRANS AND GAY AND NOTHING ANY OF YOU DO CAN STOP ME, also mabel says fuck, bank heist, everyone has it i mean it was the friggin end of the world, everyone says fuck at one point, let me live, nonbinary mabel pines, sapphic mabel pines, trans wendy courderoy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-07
Updated: 2017-08-07
Packaged: 2018-12-12 10:05:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11734803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gaymabelpines/pseuds/gaymabelpines
Summary: Stan was getting his memory back- which excited everyone! Stan was also planning to rob the Gravity Falls Bank- which actually still excited everyone! Except for his brother, who did not want to go to jail. And his nephew, who was nervous about telling Ford something. And his niece, who was worried about the end.But, hey, the town loves him. What could go wrong?





	Family Bonding and Bank Robberies

Stanford Fillbrick Pines could claim that he has had many a regret in his fifty to sixty some years of life, most of them involving a serious misconduct of scientific research of the paranormal variety. However, right now, he would tell you that his biggest regret at this moment was going downstairs to try to sneak a home-baked peanut butter cookie that his great-niece had made. The problem lay not with him taking a cookie- Mabel Pines is more than happy to share her various baking creations with her family, friends, and whoever else happened to stray in her line of sight, but with the fact that by the time Ford meandered his way into the kitchen all of the cookies were gone. Not only were all the cookies gone, but his family was all circled around the kitchen table, pouring over various- blueprints? Notes? He was content to observe this from a distance for a sweet, blissful moment before his twin brother called him over with a “Sixer! Lemme get your opinion on this!”  
And that is how he found himself assisting in a bank heist. Well, “assisting.” Currently, Stanley seemed content to take the lead of the mastermind in this particular…… escapade. Ford was content to lean back in his chair and try to stay out of this as much as possible. Was he overjoyed that his brother was making a near-full recovery after he had- after he lost- after what had happened? Yes. Was he going to still participate in this overly-complicated robbery scheme so that he can hopefully work on his newly-repaired relationship with his brother? Definitely. Was he going to gripe the whole way through this endeavour, as siblings are also want to do when their brother is about to do something completely ill-thought out and morally dubious? Oh, absolutely.  
Tuning out some talk about picking locks upside down and using a grappling hook to swing across two- no, five, sweet moses- buildings, his mind started to wander to his old research partner. Well, he used the term “research partner” lightly- the two men had dated for a little while during their college days, and then when Ford called upon his old roommate to build that hell portal the two had picked up where they left off like no time had passed at all. Unfortunately, when Cipher’s true plans were revealed (he thought of that name with bitterness, the thought of it dripped with anger and resentment and still, still a bit of fear that he knew from the few psychology books he kept would never leave), the relationship had- ended? Been put on pause? He wasn’t sure how to phrase it- it was never explicitly said between the two that this was, in fact, the end of the relationship, so that could mean that they are technically still dating. However, the fact that they spent thirty years apart each trapped within their own traumas could put a, uh, damper, upon any relationship, to put it lightly.  
Still, still, part of him hoped….  
“Maybe with just the right flowers…” he said aloud- key word aloud, here, he did not intend for it to be that way, and started to panic slightly upon realizing that-  
“Hm, possibly,” said Stan, who had heard him. Goddamn, how much of that was aloud? The whole family was staring at him now, Dipper enraptured, and Mabel had an investigative look in her eye, head tilted in skepticism.  
“I believe, uh,” he started, and wow he was really sweating, wasn’t he, tugging on his sweater collar, sitting upright now, “Flowers might be too on the nose?”  
“Honestly, I just thought you nodded off,” said Stan, completely unruffled. He picked back up the piece of paper he was pouring over, bringing it the younger twin’s attention back to him. “Yeah, flowers are a good distraction for the guard, but we don’t want him getting the wrong idea….”  
Oh. Bank robbery. Right. Right right right. Ford sat back with a relieved sigh, glad that was the only thought he accidentally revealed. He looked towards Dipper and Stan, heads bent together, swapping ideas. Those two were both absolutely brilliant, though he did wish that they would use their mastery of strategy and problem-solving to not rob the Gravity Falls Bank. He chuckled to himself, that familiar warmth beginning to go through him whenever he felt exceedingly proud and loving of his family, but more so just so, so grateful that they were still around him. He’d been feeling that warmth a lot more lately. He looked over at Mabel, expecting to see her pouring or coloring over the bank plans, but was surprised to see that she was still looking at him with the same expression as before.  
Well, this was certainly uncomfortable and nerve-wracking. He was never really sure what was going on in her head- though, he did chide himself, he would if he spent more time with her. Ford was just never really sure what they could both find common ground on, and was nervous about making a good impression, despite Stan’s protests of “c’mon, Poindexter, she loves you already, just teach her how to shoot a crossbow or something and you guys would be best buds.”  
She kept staring. He shrunk a little under her gaze, and sincerely hoped that whatever she was thinking was not going to end badly. He tried a tense smile and a small wave. Mabel tilted her head a bit more, but the confusion seemed to dissipate a bit. Ah, good, whatever she was working out in her head had been solved. She looked at him for another second, then turned her attention back to her brother and other Great-Uncle, and started discussing the countless laws they were planning on breaking. Ford considerably relaxed again, and turned his thoughts back towards Fiddleford Hardron McGucket until Stan officially called the meeting to an end. He got up and took a long stretch, and took a glance around the kitchen to see if there was any other type of cookies he could claim for himself.  
“Sounds good!” sang Mabel’s cheery voice as she waved to the other two, who were making their exit, “I’m gonna kidnap Grunkle Ford for a bit and discuss our part of the heist!” She was grinning maniacally as she grabbed one of his six-fingered hands.  
“Wait, what?” he began, but it was too late, she was already dragging him towards the secret basement. My niece had some considerable strength for a twelve-year-old, he thought absently as she said nothing while leading him to his lab.  
“So,” she said, turning to him. She did a little bit of a backwards hop onto the desk that faced the room that used to house the portal. Her elbows rested on her knees, and her two pointer fingers were tapping together. A large smile encompassed her face, as she still squinted at him, and he was reminded of his younger- much, much younger- days, when Stanley would make the same expression when he was planning something particularly devious.  
That expression on the face of a Pines never meant anything good, ever.  
“Sooooooooo,” she said again, drawling it out.  
“So,” he responded more promptly, standing up straighter. He really hoped he could lie his way out of this. “So, for our part-”  
“Yeah, you weren’t paying attention at all,” a giggle escaped her, and he deflated. Oh.  
“Don’t worry, Grunkle Ford- I made it so that you’re paired up with me, and you don’t have to tell Grunkle Stan that you completely bonked out during the meeting! I got your back!” the last bit was punctuated by finger guns and a wink.  
“Oh, well thank you! I assume that this time will be taken, then, to catch me up-”  
“Oh, we’re not doing that yet. You’ve got to do something for me first- well, two things.”  
“What,” he responded flatly. This was not the Mabel he expected. Could she be devious and cunning? Sure, her scrapbook recollection of how she “cured” Stan’s lifelong fear of heights proved so, but he always thought that she used it as a last resort and preferred other methods. What could she want?  
“Okay, first, we all have codenames, so I want to choose yours.”  
Well, that wasn’t bad- and also perfectly natural for a kid. “Of course- I don’t think that I’d have any-”  
“Perfect! You’re Dr. Crackpot now,” she said, a bright and innocent smile on her face.  
Ford changed his mind. This was bad, and there was no backing out of it now. Damn.  
“Now, second, who were you thinking about?”

 

Wow, Grunkle Ford’s entire posture just changed in a millisecond when she had asked that last bit. Mabel watched him carefully, noting as how he went from “I’m Clearly Annoyed at the Shitty Nickname You Gave Me But I’m Going to Suffer Through This” to “Oh No I’m Embarrassed and a Little Scared So I’m Going to Try To Stammer and Lie Badly To Get Out of This.” He started to sweat and tug at his collar again- now she knew where Dipper had gotten that from, she thought to herself with fondness. Seriously, though, she loved her nerdy uncle, but he seriously needed to learn how to lie. Mabel sat through about thirty seconds of really, really, bad lies and some stammering before impatience overtook her.  
“Grunkle Ford, Grunkle Ford, it’s okay! I’m not gonna tell anyone about your crush,” she said, and hoped that he got the sincerity that she was feeling about this, “I just want to help! You don’t really talk to anyone that isn’t a part of us Pines- including Wendy and Soos, they’refamilynotakebacksha!- and even then, all you really hang out with is Stan and Dipper!” He looked down and too his right, a small frown and hands held in front of his chest, telling Mabel that he felt guilt? Why guilt? She pushed that aside and continued on.  
“I’m glad that you’re getting yourself out there!” her hand started to move of their own accord, making happy motions that she did, “You deserve to surround yourself with wonderful amazing people who care about you! And I want to help you get there! Who is this mystery person who has captured you heart? What are they like? Do I know them? What’s their favorite color? Do they eat pineapple on pizza- because if so then forget all of this you don’t need that in your life. Would they like a homemade sweater? What-”  
“Mabel, Mabel!” his voice, raised a little louder than normal and escaping into a small laugh, stopped her stream of questions, “Uh, well, let’s see- we enjoy a lot of the same things, you two have met before, last I checked it was lime green, uhm, no, no pineapple on pizza, trust me I place my affections well, and yes, absolutely, if this goes well make all the sweaters you want for us.”  
She beamed- and also made a mental note of him avoiding any gender-related language, as she had. He was being really secretive about who this person was- that means that they were really important. (Also, that could mean that maybe, maybe - no. Not going to take that risk). Mabel put on her best puppy-dog eyes that always worked on Stan and not Dipper, and placed her head in her hands. A clear listening position, a “Please Tell Me More I’m All Ears.” Ford sighed, and a blush crept through his face as he rubbed the back of his neck and began.  
“We, dated, when I was working on the portal. That relationship was very special to me, and throughout my time in the portal I think that they were one of the things I truly missed about this dimension- right up there with coffee!” The warm, happy expression faded from his face. “Though, I’m afraid that I hurt them-”  
“It wasn’t you, it was Bill,” Mabel interrupted. She wasn’t going to have this- her family deserved better than beating themselves up because some stupid geometry with a bad attitude decided that he wanted to throw a fucking chaos party. (Still working on taking your own advice, though, said a mean voice in her head. Shut up, she told it back)  
“Right, right, of course- thank you.” She smiled at him with warmth, and he returned it. The thought of how healing is a process went through the both of them, and he continued on. “I’m afraid that they were hurt by Bill, and well, I’ll be honest- it completely traumatized them. We never broke up, but we did lose contact with each other after that, and they just- walked away.”  
At the last bit he something in him seemed to fall, as if he was lost. Mabel decided to do the thing she always did- keep pushing forward, and don’t look back too much.  
“Are you thinking of restarting the relationship with them again? You love them! Even after thirty years and there were probably a lot of hot alien girls out there!” her hands had been thrown up in the air.  
“Alien women don’t interest me in that aspect,” he said bluntly.  
I was talking about for me, but okay, she thought, figuring that he was probably only interested in talking to hot aliens for science stuff.  
“You should still tell them that you’re still in love with them, though!”  
“Yes, well, I’m not even sure that they’d want to continue the relationship. I was thinking that I could at least try to rekindle our friendship, but I do want to make it known that I do wish for a romantic relationship again. So, well, I can’t believe I’m asking this- do you have any ideas for a date?”  
The heavens opened up, and a chorus of kittens dressed as angels sang in a harmonious choir. World peace had been achieved, bears and people hugged each other. Dinosaurs were now fluffy, feathery bird pets, Mabel’s newly-formed acne and braces were gone. Everything had led up to this glorious moment. Hell yeah.  
“Uh, Mabel, are you alright my dear? Your face has been frozen in what I hope to be an expression of joy for the past two minutes.”  
Right, right, focus Mabel, back to earth, earth to Mabel Pines! Help your Grunkle get a date, then get married,and then convince the two nerdy lovebirds to just adopt a dog instead of building a robotic one. Focus.  
“Alright,” she started, scratching her chin, getting her Serious Face on, “So a date that’s still really nice and romantic, but still can be a good time between friends?” She thought some more, then remembered a warm night, the sounds of the party left behind as they hid away, a blush, a kiss, a promise-  
“How about a picnic?” she brightened, expectant at the reaction.  
“A picnic,” Grunkle Ford replied flatly.  
“Yeah!” she went on, undeterred, “But it would be at night- it’s still warm out so you don’t have to worry about your old man bones creaking- and there’d be candles and fireflies and it would be sweet and romantic!”  
“Huh,” he said, and stood back, hand on chin, eyes looking up and to the left, a smile that was trying to break free- he was interested. No, better yet, he liked that idea.  
“I’ll bake peanut butter cookies for the two of youuuu,” Mabel sang, knowing full well that the only reason he had come out of his lab earlier was for cookies. Cookies can bribe anyone into anything, she found.  
“Mabel you’re a genius! Thank you so much!” he picked her up and spun her around, her laughter echoing off the walls of the once-damned basement, his then joining hers. Setting her down gently after a moment, he kneeled to her height and said in a whisper, “Though, would it be too much to ask if you could please keep this from the rest of the family, please? I don’t want everyone else trying to give me their, er, advice.”  
Thinking back to the Mystery Mountain incident which rekindled her fear of spiders, Mabel wholeheartedly agreed and then bid him good-night. She skipped over each creaky old floorboard, and bounded up the rickety stairs, each part of the house seeming to protest that it’s just too old for this with every step it took, threatening to collapse beneath her despite proving time and time again that it was made of sturdier stuff. A warm light greeted her as she entered into the shared attic bedroom, her brother scribbling in a notebook, deep in thought. Mabel ran straight to her bed, covered in pink and glitter and stray scrapbooking supplies, and jumped on top of a sleeping Waddles, kicking off her shoes as she went. A squeal came from the pig’s cookie crumb covered mouth, and more laughter escaped from Mabel. Dipper rolled his eyes at the two.  
“So, how did the planning session with Grunkle Ford go?” he asked.  
“Great!” she chirped in response, “We didn’t talk about the bank heist at all!”  
“What?!”  
“Reeellaax, bro bro. He doesn’t have to do much for it anyway! Plus, I know my part down pat. And there was a more important plan we had to make!”  
“Let me guess- matchmaking?”  
“I have been sworn to secrecy.”  
“So it’s definitely matchmaking!”  
“It was just advice!” she exclaimed, knowing that there was no lying to him. “I don’t even know who he likes! I mean, I know a little about them, but not anything else. No name, no physical appearance, nothing!”  
“Not even age?”  
“Well, not exact age, but they were together when he was building the portal so I’m gonna assume like a hundred years old.”  
Her brother snorted at the last bit, then turned thoughtful.  
“Not even their gender? Or do they, like, usually go by they/them pronouns?”  
A beat, a pause in the room. Huh- Mabel didn’t notice until now that when she first used gender-neutral terms towards Ford’s true love, that he in turn mimicked that with his answers. Dipper took her silence as confirmation that no, she did not know the gender of the person in question.  
“It might be another guy- like Old Man McGucket?” he pondered, and his pen found it’s way between his teeth and he started lightly chewing.  
“Pff, if it was then we wouldn’t be here- you know what mom and dad are like,” she evaded, trying to squash that hope in her chest that maybe, maybe she wasn’t the only person in the family who was-  
“I’ve been thinking about coming out to him,” Dipper said, with a sort of finality, like he was trying to convince himself of it.  
That prompted Mabel to take a look at him. His body language screamed of fear and shame, he refused to look at her and instead was hunched over the notebook, pen dangling from his mouth still. She jumped off her bed, and padded over to him and hopped onto the bed. Placing a gentle hand on his shoulder, he turned his face towards her. He looked pale and like he was about to vomit- ew.  
“Dipper,” she started, “I’m with you 100% of the way. And if Grunkle Ford decides to be an asshole about any of this, then his kneecaps will face my unbridled wrath!!”  
That prompted a laugh from Dipper, who was clearly relieved. Mabel joined in, wanting nothing more than for her brother to feel safe, feel welcome, feel not-messed up, for as long as he can until the end of summer.  
“His kneecaps?” he asked.  
“It’s the easiest for me to reach,” she said matter-of-factly, “And since he’s old his bones will probably be more brittle. Also, when he goes down, then I can reach other parts like the face.”  
“That’s uh, really thought out?” a nervous chuckle came from him. How often did his twin think about how she could take down her family members?  
She let out a laugh in answer to his question. Dipper started to sweat.  
“Hey, how long have you been wearing your binder?” she prompted, reminded all of a sudden.  
“Oh, I already took it off before you came upstairs,” he assured, yet was clearly nervous, “I’m working on being more responsible about it and my timing.”  
“Hey, Dipper?”  
“Yeah?”  
“Learn to lie better.”  
He groaned, rolled his eyes, and started to head out towards the bathroom. She threw a pair of pajamas- well, really, just an oversized t-shirt and some pj bottoms- at his head before he could leave. He turned around towards her, annoyed.  
“You can’t just wear the same outfit all the time! You’d smell like barf and despair and nobody would like you!”  
A heavy sigh escaped him, and he carried the clothes to the bathroom with him, knowing that Mabel was always right. She got up and got ready to go to sleep, and her mind wandered to how her parents reacted when she pretended to be Dipper, testing the waters, both of them anxious to see if it was safe to tell them.  
Shut down. You’re a girl. They said that matter of fact, no doubt, no questions. Anything else would be wrong. You’re a girl. You’re a girl, you’re a girl, you’re a girl-  
Mabel shook her head, and pulled her favorite purple sleep shirt over her head. A tentative knock on the door, and she confirmed that it was okay for her brother to come back in. He did so, and she was pleased to note that he was wearing the pajamas and the binder that Wendy had got for him was in his hand. They both wished each other sweet dreams, punctuated with affectionate name-calling, and Mabel curled up with Waddles and tried not to think about the knot in her chest when it came to what she was and how she felt, and focused instead on protecting her brother.


End file.
